Frederick a



F. A. LIPPERT.

DRYING ROOM.

APPLICATION FILED A'PR.22.1916.

' Affg,

, Patented May 6, 1919..

ill

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK A. LIPPERT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WENBORNE-KARPEN DRYER G0,, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

DRYING-ROOM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 6, 1919.

Application filed April 22, 1916. SeriaI No. 92,868.

improved arrangement for heating and cir-' culating air in the kiln; and to provide an arrangement of this kind which will be practical and efficient even when the'ends' of the kiln remain more or less open to permit the continuous inward and outward passage of articles being treated. l

The drawing shows an interior perspective view of a' kiln constructed according to this invention, the front end being a cross section. Kilns or ovens for doin the class of work for which the present kiln is idesigned usuall comprise structures which must be close during operation to prevent the escape of heat and the disturbance of the proper operating conditions by the inflow of cold air from without. In the form shown, the present kiln comprises an elongated structure more or less open at its ends, and preferably provided with tracks on the floor for guiding trucks which may be continuously or intermittently drawn along by an endless chain or belt. Spaced inwardly from the outer side walls of the kiln and running parallel therewith, are partitions or walls extending upwardly from the floor, but not reaching to the roof of the kiln, and in the spaces so provided at the sides of the drying chamber are heating means for heating the air and causing it to flow upward in said spaces and over the inner walls. At the lower parts of said inner walls are two sets of registers serving as air outlets. The outlets adjacent to the floor communicate with the heating spaces and the outlets located in a plane abovelsaid first-mentioned outlets communicate with air outlet conduits leading to one or more common air stacks or chin'ineys. By this arrangement, the air which is supplied to the kiln flows inwardly from the ends along the floor, then through the lower set of registers, then upwardly around the heating coils and over the upper edges of the inner walls, then downwardly in the drying chamber to the level of the second set of registers through which it is drawn out by the draft of the chimneys or the outlet stacks. It may be seen that, by this arrangement, there is a shallow lower stratum of comparatively cold air flowing along the floor and extending up to the level of the lower outlet registers, being the space occupied by the trucks which support the articles being dried, and an upper and deeper stratum of heated air which extends throughout the drying space. By regulating a damper in the outlet vent, more or less of the air may be recirculated through the kiln.

The outer walls 1 of the kiln are preferably insulated, the insulation l-being shown in the drawing by a conventional section to represent air cell asbestos. These walls are preferably manufactured in sections which may be quickly mounted and secured together. The roof 6 is similarly constructed in sections, and the corner formed by the roof and the side walls 1 maybe occupied by inclined sections for the purpose of directing the air flowing upwardly at the sides of the kiln toward the center of the same. The inner walls 8 extend upwardly from the floor 9 to within a foot or two of the roof 6. Heating coils 10 are located in the spaces 11 between the walls 1 and 8 and supplied with a heating medium through theconnections 12 to the transversely extending pipes 13 near the roof of the kiln and leading into a common supply pipe 14. The heating coils at each side are also connected to a. common return pipe 15 located near the floor. Outlet registers 16 and 17 are located in ditlerent horizontal planes, and in the form shown there are the same number of each and the outlets 17 are directly above the outlets 16 though this is not essential since the air entering the outlets 16-naturally spreads over the floor of the heating chambers before hecoming heated and rising.

chamber to a greater or less extent, as it is with the heating coils and the articles being treated.

A chain belt 21 extends along the middle line of the floor of the drying chamber, and is guided by suitable rollers between the guards 22. Tracks 23 are secured to the fioor at each side of chain 21. The trucks for carrying the articles to be treated are attached to the chain-21 and rolled along the tracks from end to end of the kiln. The ends of the kiln are partially closed by permanent walls 24 and hinged doors or flaps '25, these flaps being engaged and swung on their hinges as articles treated pass through the ends of the kiln. In the operation of the kiln, trucks are drawn through the same at the required speed by the chain belt 21 to which the trucks are secured. The articles thereon in entering the kiln, engage the hinged doors 25, rocking them out of the way as they enter the kiln. The lower stratum of cold air prevents injury to the trucks in case the same are made of wood or other material liable to injury through becoming over dry. The flow of air is always inward and, therefore, the ends of the kiln may be more or less open and such flow of air is duly limited since the open spaces at the ends of the kiln are always more or less blocked by the trucks and articles entering and leaving the kiln. The areas of the air inlet openings at the ends oi the kiln should be so proportioned as to supply the proper amount of fresh air to suit the needs of the apparatus and limit the depth of the stratum of cold air on the floor. If the cold air extends to a level of the tops of the lower registers, there will be no recirculation of air, anddf it extends to the tops of the upper registers it would tend to completely choke ofi all air movement. It is not essential that the cold air inlets be at the ends of the drying room, but the advantage of having them at the ends is obvious in view of the fact that this permits of the continuous inward and outward passage of articles without unduly disturbing the air conditions within the drying chamber.

Although but one specific embodiment of this invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood-that numerous details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. In an apparatus of the class described, the combination of an elongated drying chamber, means for conveying articles to be dried lengthwise through said drying chamber, means partly closing the ends of said drying chamber and formed to provide an,

the combination of an elongated drying chamber, means for conveying articles to be dried lengthwise through said drying chamber, means partlyclosing the ends of said drying chamber and formed to provide an opening approximating in shape and dimensions the silhouetteof the articles to be dried and the conveying means therefor, said means including a swingable section normally extending across the path of the arti cles to be dried and adapted to be swung out of such path through the passage of said articles.

3. A drying kiln, comprising an elongated structure having side walls and a root and open ends, inner side walls spaced inwardly from said first mentioned side walls and having openings therein near the tops and bottoms thereof, heating coils located in the spaces between said side walls, air outlets in said inner side walls located above said bottom openings, and outlet flues located in said spaces between the side walls and communicating with said air outlets.

1. A drying kiln, comprising an elongatedv structure having side walls and a roof and open ends, inner side walls spaced inwardly from said first mentioned side walls and having openings therein near the tops and bottoms thereof, heating coils located in the spaces between said side walls, air outlets in said inner side walls located above said bot tom openings, and outlet flues located in said spaces between the side walls and communicating with said air outlets, the ends of said drying room bein provided with hinged flaps which may e engaged and pushed aside by articles passing into and out of the drying room.

Signed at Chicago this 17th day of Apr., 1916.

FREDERICK A. LIPPERT. 

